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On Point news analyst Jack Beatty on how the Trump administration has transformed which reporters get to be in the White House briefing room and travel with the president.

Few of the world’s great scientists have given more thought to the existential threats to humanity than the irrepressible British cosmologist and astronomer Martin Rees. He’s the co-founder of Cambridge University’s Centre for Existential Risk as well as the author of the 2003 book Our Final Hour. So it’s striking that Rees has a quite different take on the existential risk of artificial intelligence technology than many AI doomers including yesterday’s guest, the 2024 Physics Nobel laureate Geoffrey Hinton. For Rees, bio-threats and network collapse represents the most dangerous technological threats to humanity in the near future. Unlike nuclear weapons, which require massive detectable infrastructure, Rees warns, dangerous pathogens can be engineered in small, unmonitored laboratories. Meanwhile, our civilization's complete dependence on interconnected global networks means system failures could trigger catastrophic societal breakdown within days. Apocalypse now? Perhaps. But, according to the prescient Rees, we are preparing for the wrong apocalypse.

1. AI's Real Danger Isn't Superintelligence—It's System Dependency

Rees is "very skeptical" about AI takeover scenarios. Instead, he worries about our over-dependence on globe-spanning networks that control electricity grids and internet infrastructure. When these fail—whether from cyberattacks or malfunctions—society could collapse within "two or three days."

2. Bio-Threats Are Uniquely Undetectable and Unstoppable

Unlike nuclear weapons that require massive, monitorable facilities, dangerous pathogens can be engineered in small, undetected laboratories. "Gain of function" experiments could create bioweapons far worse than COVID, and preventing this would require impossible levels of surveillance over anyone with relevant expertise.

3. We're Living Through a Uniquely Dangerous Era

Rees believes "the prospect of a catastrophe in the next 10 or 20 years is perhaps higher than it's ever been." We're the first species in Earth's history capable of changing the entire planet—for good or ill—making this a genuinely special and precarious moment.

4. Scientific Wonder Grows with Knowledge, Not Despite It

Contrary to those who claim science diminishes mystery, Rees - the co-author of an upcoming book about scientific wonder - argues that "the more we understand, the more wonderful and complicated things appear." As knowledge advances, new mysteries emerge that couldn't even be conceived decades earlier.

5. Humility About Human Limitations Is Essential

Just as "a monkey can't understand quantum mechanics," there may be fundamental aspects of reality beyond human comprehension. Rees warns against immediately invoking God for unexplained phenomena, advocating instead for accepting our cognitive limits while continuing to push boundaries.

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So will AI wipe us out? According to Geoffrey Hinton, the 2024 Nobel laureate in physics, there's about a 10-20% chance of AI being humanity's final invention. Which, as the so-called Godfather of AI acknowledges, is his way of saying he has no more idea than you or I about its species-killing qualities. That said, Hinton is deeply concerned about some of the consequences of an AI revolution that he pioneered at Google. From cyber attacks that could topple major banks to AI-designed viruses, from mass unemployment to lethal autonomous weapons, Hinton warns we're facing unprecedented risks from technology that's evolving faster than our ability to control it. So does he regret his role in the invention of generative AI? Not exactly. Hinton believes the AI revolution was inevitable—if he hadn't contributed, it would have been delayed by perhaps a week. Instead of dwelling on regret, he's focused on finding solutions for humanity to coexist with superintelligent beings. His radical proposal? Creating "AI mothers" with strong maternal instincts toward humans—the only model we have for a more powerful being designed to care for a weaker one.

1. Nobody Really Knows the Risk Level Hinton's 10-20% extinction probability is essentially an admission of complete uncertainty. As he puts it, "the number means nobody's got a clue what's going to happen" - but it's definitely more than 1% and less than 99%.

2. Short-Term vs. Long-Term Threats Are Fundamentally Different Near-term risks involve bad actors misusing AI (cyber attacks, bioweapons, surveillance), while the existential threat comes from AI simply outgrowing its need for humans - something we've never faced before.

3. We're Creating "Alien Beings" Right Now Unlike previous technologies, AI represents actual intelligent entities that can understand, plan, and potentially manipulate us. Hinton argues we should be as concerned as if we spotted an alien invasion fleet through a telescope.

4. The "AI Mothers" Solution Hinton's radical proposal: instead of trying to keep AI submissive (which won't work when it's smarter than us), we should engineer strong maternal instincts into AI systems - the only model we have of powerful beings caring for weaker ones.

5. Superintelligence Is Coming Within 5-20 Years Most leading experts believe human-level AI is inevitable, followed quickly by superintelligence. Hinton's timeline reflects the consensus among researchers, despite the wide range.

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I interviewed Henrik Karlsson, a writer who's developed a five-step method for writing that starts with exploring without pressure and ends with crafting the opening last, after everything else is done. We talked about why looking away from the page improves your writing, how to suck reality into your descriptions, why protecting young ideas from early critique matters, and how to access pre-linguistic mental states where the best ideas live. He shared strange experiments that actually work, why breaking grammar rules improves your voice, and how writing becomes a search query for finding your perfect audience. If you want to write with more depth, develop your authentic voice, and learn how to turn mental chaos into compelling essays, this conversation will show you exactly how. Enjoy!

Hey! I’m David Perell and I’m a writer, teacher, and podcaster. I believe writing online is one of the biggest opportunities in the world today. For the first time in human history, everybody can freely share their ideas with a global audience. I seek to help as many people publish their writing online as possible.

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In The Position of Spoons novelist, essayist and playwright Deborah Levy invites the reader to share in her interior world, mapping her own life through the lives and works of the artists and writers who have shaped her own practice, from Marguerite Duras to Colette and Ballard, and from Lee Miller to Francesca Woodman and Paula Rego.

Levy, described by Lauren Elkin as ‘one of the most exciting voices in contemporary British fiction’, talks about it here with Adam Thirlwell.

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Frank joins a secret society with Pebbles Flintstone and the poet, Scott McKendry. The poems referenced are ‘Keepers of the Pedigree’ and ‘Hi-Vis’.

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Other, weaker podcasts may take the summer off. Not this one.

…the story of Jerry Garcia’s alligator strat, Paul McCartney’s violin bass and the instrument Peter Frampton thought had gone forever

…the long story of Terry Reid, who turned down Led Zeppelin, and the golden afternoon when he was the most charismatic figure in roc

…the real reason why you wouldn’t have wanted to be at Keith Richards’ place on that day in 1967

…why there’s nothing more boring than hedonism

Mick Jagger’s 1967 affidavit is here: https://www.ewbankauctions.co.uk/20250821M1-lot-4008-The-Rolling-Stones-typed-documents-that-appear-to-relate-the-infamous-Redlands?auction

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Creating an orderly environment can be surprisingly energizing and mood-boosting. And while an empty shelf holds invitation and promise, so does a junk drawer. 

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Visit Gretchen's website to learn more about Gretchen's best-selling books, products from The Happiness Project Collection, and the Happier app.

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Oliver Callan hosts a panel show in which comedians from both sides of the Irish border and Britain imagine what a united Ireland would look like if it ever happened.

This week, Oliver Callan is joined by Neil Delamere, Alison Spittle, John Meagher and Ashley Storrie to debate a new national flag, who the head of state might be and the official, national breakfast.

To listen to Part 2: Belfast, search Oliver Callan Bins The Border on BBC Sounds.

Producer: Marc McElroy

Ray Bradbury, the legendary author who passed away in 2012, sat down for an interview with Richard Wolinsky and Richard A. Lupoff in 1992 at his home in Los Angeles.

Though called a science fiction or fantasy writer, Ray Bradbury spanned all genres, from poetry to mystery to mainstream fiction. Among his works include The Martian Chronicles, Something Wicked This Way Comes, Farenheit 451 and The Illustrated Man.

This interview was digitized and re-edited by Richard Wolinsky in 2020 and first posted on July 26, 2020,

The post The Probabilities Archive: Ray Bradbury (1920-2012), Grandmaster of Science Fiction and Fantasy, 1992 appeared first on KPFA.